News: Flag-raising program begins on hospital campuses

February 7th, 2011

Centegra Health System will now honor people who become organ and tissue donors by flying Donate Life flags outside of its hospitals in McHenry and Woodstock.”Centegra’s hospital staff and visitors will now know each time someone has made the selfless decision to be an organ and tissue donor when they see the Donate Life flag unfurled on our hospital flagpoles,”  said Centegra Chief Executive Officer Michael S. Eesley. “The flag will recognize the extraordinary gesture a donor or donor family made at our hospital and signify that many lives may be saved or enhanced through the donor’s generous gift of donation.” The Donate Life flag flew to honor the donation decision for the first time on January 26 at Centegra Hospital-McHenry.”Raising a flag to honor these extraordinary, heartfelt donations is a small way to pay tribute to donors and their family members, Eesley said. “Opportunities for organ donation are rare, so teamwork between Centegra’s hospitals and Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network, the organ procurement organization we work with to coordinate organ and tissue donation, is critical to the success of donation and, ultimately, transplantation.” Centegra Hospital-McHenry and Centegra Hospital-Woodstock both have established an environment that prepares hospital staff to recognize and refer every potential donation, said Allison Wallace, Gift of Hope’s Hospital Development Coordinator who serves as the liaison between Centegra’s hospitals and Gift of Hope.”Centegra Health System is committed to the vital partnership that can make organ and tissue donation possible and produce rewarding outcomes for donors and donor families. We encourage every Illinoisan to contribute to those positive results by registering his or her decision to be an organ and tissue donor at DonateLifeIllinois.org,”  Wallace said.Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network is a not-for-profit organ procurement organization entrusted by the nation’s healthcare system with coordinating organ and tissue donation and providing donor family services and public education in Illinois and northwest Indiana. Since its inception in 1986, Gift of Hope has coordinated donations that have saved the lives of more than 18,000 organ transplant recipients and improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of tissue transplant recipients. As one of 58 organ procurement organizations that make up the nation’s organ and tissue donation system, Gift of Hope works with 179 hospitals and serves 12 million residents in its donation service area.

Centegra Health System is committed to meeting the healthcare needs of the residents of greater McHenry County and to making services available in multiple and convenient locations, including hospitals in McHenry and Woodstock, Immediate and Primary Care centers, Centegra Sage Cancer Center, Health Bridge Fitness Centers and more. As the region’s leading healthcare provider, Centegra Health System continues to bring the latest treatments and technology, along with the skills of nearly 4,000 medical professionals, to meet the needs of the growing McHenry County community. For more information on Centegra Health System visit centegra.org, search Centegra on Facebook or call 877-CENTEGRA (877-236-8347).